We’ve all been there. Waking up to a screaming alarm, rolling over and groaning, “how is it 6 A.M. already? I feel like I got only 2 hours of sleep!”

It’s no secret that lack of sleep can really mess with your day. You roll out of bed and stumble into the bathroom, stubbing your toe on the side of the door. Standing in the mirror trying to apply makeup to eyes half shut, and finally getting your coffee only to realize that you’re probably going to need several more cups just to survive the morning!

The will to get out of the bed when you’ve only had a few hours of good sleep is only the beginning of what it will take to get through the day. Most of us are immediately feeling grumpy when we’re not well-rested. We feel sluggish, irritable, and tired, and even the simplest of everyday tasks feel like a real chore to get through!

We may be experiencing an achy back or muscles from tossing and turning, our bodies feel run down and our minds aren’t quite up to par either. We find we may not be as productive or easily able to focus on tasks throughout the day. Our minds and bodies resting every chance they get, ready to fall back asleep as we hunch over our desk trying to get through what seems like a mountain of work!

The truth is, not getting the right amount of sleep not only ruins your day, but it can wreak real havoc on your health too. Chronic sleep debt has been shown to negatively affect blood pressure, and it can make you prone to serious medical conditions such as obesity, heart disease, diabetes and more. It doesn’t just effect your body either. Lack of sleep has also been linked to depression and anxiety as well.

You may find that even with doing all the right things to help yourself wind down at night (turning off the gadgets a few hours before bedtime, turning down the lights, enjoying something relaxing before bedtime, limiting distractions while you sleep, limiting caffeine, etc) you still find yourself having trouble sleeping at night. While there could be many causes (one of my biggest problems being able to shut my mind off at night), sometimes the solution can be as simple as sleeping in the correct bed.

While most of us already know that we sleep better on certain beds versus others, what you may not know is that the level of firmness of your bed absolutely plays a role on how well you sleep.

*This Post contains affiliate links for which I will be compensated when purchases are made.

According to a 2015 National Sleep Foundation survey an estimated 23% of American couples are now sleeping apart. Dr. Neil Stanley, a sleep expert at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, says that’s largely because couples who continue to share a bed suffer from 50 percent more sleep disturbances than those who sleep alone. Small wonder that the bed-sharing culture—once viewed as a litmus test for healthy marriages—has shifted drastically over the last few years, with couples increasingly working to find a balance between their needs for closeness and a good night’s rest.

While creating separate bedrooms is an obvious solution, many couples find their desire for intimacy and sheer proximity outweigh the drawbacks of sleep disturbances. If you’re one of those couples willing to stick it out in the bedroom, here are a few coping mechanisms for the top 7 contributors to sleep loss.

Snoring and Sleep Apnea

Snoring and sleep apnea can be nothing short of a nightmare for lighter sleep partners—but taking stock of the current situation is essential says Suzan E. Jaffe, Ph.D., a board-certified psychiatrist and expert in behavioral sleep disorders. It may be that your new bed partner is the first to discover you snore, or significantly, have a more serious sleep disorder. On the other hand, if you’ve been married for years and suddenly find you’re losing more sleep than ever due to your spouse’s snoring or sleep apnea, you both need to determine what’s changed. Getting to the heart of the matter, as well as finding the most effective solutions, is essential.

Tips:

Earplugs, noise canceling earbuds or headbands, along with white noise sound machines or apps are all straightforward fixes if your partner is a light snorer. Turning a fan or AC unit on high can have the same effect (though these measures will likely increase your utility bill). If the cause of snoring is nasal congestion, then nasal strips are a safe way to open air passages and reduce heavier breathing.

Most sleepers who are prone to snore do so more heavily when sleeping on their backs. Training a partner to sleep on his or her side is tricky, though—sewing a tennis ball, for instance, into your partner’s pajamas can be effective only if he or she wears the right clothing to bed. Your best bet is to ensure your bed is not too hard. To sleep on your side, you need adequate pressure point relief for your hips, neck, and shoulders. Mattresses featuring latex—or a latex alternative foam that provides just enough support with the right amount of bounce—is optimal. You should also make sure your pillow is the right height with just the right amount of loft. Latex pillows are a good choice for head and neck support due to their immediate recovery following compression.

More drastic measures should be taken if your sleep partner snores heavily or suffers from a sleep disorder. Anti-snoring devices like mouthpieces are often recommended for patients who suffer from mild to moderate sleep disorders. CPAP machines are not only helpful but a medical necessity for people who snore severely or have sleep apnea—long-term health issues like high blood pressure and diabetes are associated with each condition. Bottom line: if you or your partner suspect you have sleep apnea, find a licensed sleep expert in your area to help you both get the good night’s rest and longevity you deserve. [Read more…]

Hey, lovely! In December, one of my lucky readers won an awesome Mattress of choice from Brooklyn bedding!

Well, Brooklyn Bedding has asked me to host another giveaway for them where another one of you fabulous readers will get the chance to WIN a Brooklyn Signature Mattress of your choice of size or firmness level!

ENTER TO WIN A Mattress of choice from Brooklyn Bedding at the bottom of this post! (a $2000 Value!)

Booklyn bedding manufacturer and retailer of custom mattresses since 1995, continues to raise the bar on bed-in-a-box innovation. The company announced today the evolution of the #BestMattressEver, launching the new Brooklyn Signature with individually pocketed coils to provide customized support, combined with the premium TitanFlex™ foam that made Brooklyn Bedding renowned for comfort and cooling.“The #BestMattressEver has been our number one selling mattress online and in-store since its inception,” said John Merwin, Owner and Chief Executive Officer at Brooklyn Bedding. “Because we constantly strive to create added value for our customers, we began to explore ways to make the #BestMattressEver even better. By simply replacing the base foam with individually pocketed coils we were able to dramatically improve the sleep experience. Customers overwhelmingly preferred the comfort and support of the hybrid bed—the new Brooklyn Signature is now the ideal combination of high quality, responsive foam layers, and temperature regulation, paired with high-end coils that offer deep compression support and limited motion transfer.”

Brooklyn Bedding pioneered the bed-in-a-box concept, rolling and compressing their first mattresses in their own factory and selling them on Amazon in 2008. Today, Brooklyn Bedding possesses the state-of-the-art capability to package virtually any mattress in a box, including top-of-the-line beds with encased coils. The upgraded Brooklyn Signature will still retail for less than half the price of most hybrid mattresses because of the Brooklyn Bedding end-to-end manufacturing model, which enables the company to control costs and pass on the savings to customers.

“By continuing to push manufacturing limits, and over delivering when it comes to quality, we distinguish our brand from companies that adopted bed-in-a-box technology several years after we did, using a one-size-fits-all mentality,” said Merwin. “The upgraded Brooklyn Signature is the culmination of owning our own manufacturing facility where we can test and implement customer feedback in real time, and upgraded technology that allows us to provide value to every product we make, sell and ship.”

The Brooklyn Signature will feature the Brooklyn Bedding brand’s trademark craftsmanship, made on demand in Phoenix, Ariz. and shipped to any location in the country. Offered in three firmness levels, prices will start at $599 for a twin size mattress.

ABOUT BROOKLYN BEDDING

Brooklyn Bedding is an American made manufacturer of mattresses, differentiated by master craftsmanship, a wholly owned state-of-the art manufacturing facility and, exceptional customer service. Family owned since 1995, the company originated with two brothers delivering mattress products direct to customers’ homes. Known as the “mobile mattress guys,” John and Rob Merwin evolved their business by learning every aspect of the mattress making process. They tenaciously used every material in their inventory to pass savings on to customers, purchasing high-grade manufacturing equipment and pioneering bed-in-a-box online delivery in 2008.

Today, the company owns world-class expertise in mattress engineering, achieved through meticulous attention to detail, cutting edge equipment and patented materials created with advanced technology. Brooklyn Bedding designs and creates its entire line of high-quality bedding, on demand, in its manufacturing facility in Arizona. Remaining true to its roots, the company still goes the extra mile to ensure customer satisfaction, offering its expertly crafted mattresses, sheets and pillows at an affordable price with free online shipping, a generous 120-day trial period, and a 10-year hassle free warranty period on mattresses.